Improvement in rulers



T. B. MOSHER. Ruler.

No. 218,764. Patented Aug. 19, I879.

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a w A y x WITNESSES INVENTOR ,5 M BY \AA (AMAA ATTORNEYS.

N.PEI'ERS, PHOTO-UTMOGRAFHER. WASHINGTON. D c

UNITED STATES PATENT OFF cn THOMAS B. MOSHER, OF PORTLAND, MAINE.

IM P ROVEM ENT IN RULERS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 218,764, dated August19, 1879; application filed March 11, 1879.

.To all whomit may concern:

Be it known that I, THOMAS BIRD MOSH'ER, of Portland, in the county ofCumberland and State of Maine, have invented a new and Improved Ruler,of which the following is a specification.

Figure l .is a plan of the ruler, partly in section. Fig. 2 is across-section of the same on line as w.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts.

The object of this invention is to provide an instrument thatmay be usednot only asa ruler, but for se'verel/other purposes besides.

The invention consists of a narrow strip of wood or other suitablematerial, A, such as metal, hard rubber, ivory, and the like, of alength of twelve or fifteen inches, more or less,

made flat on its under surface to prevent rolling, provided with a sharpedge, e, to serve as a paper'cutter, and having a hollow cylindricalback-piece, a, running its whole length on its upper surface, and socombined with it as to form a step, b, alongthe line of junction, whichstep is sufficient to prevent ink from soiling or blotting the paperthat one is ruling. The back-piece is made hollow throughout for thepurpose of holding pencil or pen-handle, or other articles, and in eachend of it is a plug,

0 c, the one of which forms thehandle of an ink-eraser, d, while theother forms thehandle of a piece of erasive rubber, f.

Close to the back-piece b, and extending along the upper surface of theruler, is the groove 9, forming a convenient receptacle for pen orpencil when hurriedly laid aside.

At h is a hole through the ruler, by which it may be hung up. v

It is obvious that this combination-ruler possesses many advantages,many points of superiority over others, and that it possesses the meritof being an exceedingly useful instrument.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secureby Letters Patent The herein-described rule, consisting of the flatpiece A, provided with the cutting-edge e, the step b, thegroove g, andthe hole It, and the hollow cylindrical back-piece a, provided with theplugs c a, respectively attached to an ink-eraser, d, and an erasiverubber, f, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

THOMAS BIRD MOSHER.

Witnesses:

GEORGE F. GOULD, ARTHUR W. SEWELL.

